I-91 southbound could reopen Wednesday after being closed because of Hurricane Irene flooding

Jeff Brown photoTraffic was at stand still on I-91 South before Exit 26 in Greenfield the day after Hurricane Irene.

GREENFIELD - The state Department of Transportation is hoping to re-open the southbound lanes of Interstate 91 after determining they are safe for travel.

The entire highway, between exits 24 and 27 from Deerfield to Greenfield, was closed Sunday night after Tropical Storm Irene caused severe flooding in the Deerfield River. The raging water had engineers questioning if bridge abutments in the water could have been compromised.

The flood waters receded enough Monday for inspectors to be able to examine the abutments and determine they were safe, said Michael Verseckes, spokesman for the Department of Transportation.

"The southbound lanes are still closed for safety reasons," he said.

In another severe flood in 1987, there was settling under the footings on that side of the bridge. A dive team must inspect that side of the bridge to ensure there are no more problems before it is reopened, Verseckes said.

The Department is hoping the work can be done Wednesday.

"It depends. We need the water to recede more before we can do the inspection," he said.